Things Changed
by goldistic
Summary: Adam Ruzek is in another tough position, and he can only think of one man to talk to. And this time, both men get some advice. Sequel to "Two Men, One Story". Set after Chicago PD's "My Way" but before the season finale of Chicago Fire.


**A/N: Since I watched Ruzek's fiance break up with him, I've been thinking about writing this one-shot. So, I wrote it. I hope you like it and make sure you tell me what you think. :)**

**Oh, and by the way, if any of you read "The Unthinkable", "Revenge", or "Not Like This", I'll be updating all of them soon. :)**

Adam Ruzek hurriedly tapped his fingers on his steering wheel, waiting for the red glow of the traffic light to turn green. The rain hit his car impatiently, and he looked out the window, sighing heavily. Just ten minutes ago the night sky had been postcard perfect, but now, the weather resembled his mood.

He tried to get his mind off of Wendy, off of Kim, off of the whole day in general. It started out with him telling Burgess that his mixed signals were going to stop and he was going to marry Wendy. He meant his words, even though saying them may have been the hardest thing he's ever done. But only hours later Wendy came into the office, and broke up with him, handing her engagement ring over to the conflicted man.

Once their work was done and the case was closed, he felt like he needed to talk to Kim. Despite their earlier conversation, he still thought of her as a close friend and respected her opinion. But her protective partner stopped him from doing that, and defeated, he left the office.

Now he was here, sitting at an intersection, not entirely sure about where he was headed to tonight. Wendy had said she was staying with family, so their apartment was empty, but going there felt wrong. He knew he wouldn't catch sleep anytime soon, despite the long and exhausting day he had.

He picked up his phone from the center console and scrolled through his contacts, trying to look for Kim's number. But when his eyes landed on Matthew Casey's number, he suddenly remembered the good advice the other man gave him a few weeks ago. Without thinking twice about it, Adam delivered a call to Casey. The phone rang twice before the Lieutenant answered.

"Hello?," Casey's voice came over the phone, background noise highly evident.

"Hey man, it's Ruzek," Adam says. "I was just wondering if you wanted to go to Molly's and get a beer."

"Yeah," Casey replies. "Sounds good, I'm already here so I'll just save you a seat."

"Thanks Casey, I'll be there in a few." With that, Adam hung up his phone and tossed it back in the center console, creating a loud clattering noise.

He took a deep breath, looking forward to his talk with the firefighter. The last time they had talked, Casey had given great advice, and when Adam left the bar, he was planning on following it. But when he had gotten home, Wendy had talked about the wedding, about how great it was going to be, and how excited she was.

Her positive energy had passed on to Adam, and he began to think about a future with Wendy. Kids, grandkids, the whole shabang. That's all he's ever wanted besides being a cop. With Kim, nothing was certain. They had only known each other for a few months, shared only one kiss, and barely knew anything about each other.

That's why Adam decided to go on the safe route and continue his relationship with Wendy. Of course, he still had feelings for Kim, and he was well aware of their spark, but he and Wendy had been together for a long time. He couldn't throw that away for some butterflies he got whenever he was around Burgess.

But, at the same time, Adam knew his feelings for Kim went beyond just some butterflies in his stomach. His feelings were real, and he was sure that Kim's feelings were also real. He was an idiot not to follow Casey's advice the first time, and he had paid the price.

Soon, he found himself at Molly's, and he shut off his car before climbing out. He jogged up to the front door, not wanting to get too wet from the rain. To his surprise, the place was packed, even for a Friday night. Things were finally starting to look up for the old bar. It was about damn time.

He saw most of the firehouse, along with Jay, Erin, Olinsky, and Antonio. Olinsky was the first to see him, and he waved Adam over to the cops' table.

"Hey man," Antonio greets, nodding at the rookie detective. "I thought you said you weren't comin' here tonight?"

Adam shrugs, standing in front of the table. "Changed my mind I guess."

"Well sit down, order a drink," Jay suggests, sliding further into the booth so Ruzek could sit down.

"Actually I'm lookin' for Matthew Casey," Adam tells them, looking around the bar for the blonde man. Jay shifts uncomfortably, sipping his beer. Erin shoots him a teasing look, raising her eyebrows as she also sips her drink. At the same time, Severide slides into the booth with a beer, putting his arm around Erin.

"Hey Severide, you seen Casey?" Antonio asks the Squad Lieutenant, and Adam looks over at Erin's boyfriend, waiting for an answer.

"Uh, yeah, I just saw him talking to Shay about something at the end of the bar," Severide says, looking towards his friend. Adam follows his gaze and nods once he sees him.

"Thanks," he says, leaving his coworkers and walking towards Casey. Casey smiles once he spots Ruzek, and Shay walks back behind the bar.

"Hey, good to see ya," Casey greets, holding out his hand as Ruzek sits himself down on the barstool.

"You too," Adam replies sincerely, shaking Casey's hand. "How've ya been?"

"Great," Casey answers, smiling as he nods. "What about you?"

Ruzek shakes his head, not knowing how to answer. Casey notices his hesitance, and looks at the cop with a concerned expression. "What happened man?"

"My fiance broke up our engagement." Ruzek says, sipping his usual beer that Herrmann dropped off to him seconds before.

"I thought you were going to break up with her?" Casey asks, his concern changing to confusion.

"Well when I left the bar that night after talking to you, that was the plan. But when I got home...she was so excited about the wedding, all she wanted to do was plan, and I guess she got me excited for it again. I couldn't break up with her."

"If she was so excited about the wedding, why'd she break it off?" Casey wonders, sipping his beer.

Adam shrugs, sighing a little as he also sips his beer. "She told me something about my job has changed me, and she couldn't do it anymore."

"Hmm," Casey says, tapping his fingers on the bar counter as he thinks about what Ruzek said. "Do you still have feelings for that cop you were talking about?"

"Yeah," he replies, nodding. "I tried to ignore them, I tried to push them aside, but they never went away."

"Did you ever think that maybe she was the thing that changed you?" Casey asks, looking at him curiously. Ruzek ponders this, his fingers playing with the rim of the beer bottle.

"Y'know, now that you mention it...ever since I met Kim, the cop I have feelings for, I've noticed myself distancing away from Wendy, my fiance," Ruzek says, nodding at the Lieutenant.

"Well then maybe your separation is a good thing. You're not a bad person for getting feelings for somebody else while you're in a relationship," Casey assures him, sipping his beer.

"I know, but I still love Wendy...I'm just not _in_ love with her anymore. You know what I mean?"

Casey shrugs, sighing a little. "It happens, man. Don't get mad at yourself for that. But now you need to focus on Kim. I'm not saying you should jump into a relationship with her, instead take things slow. Allow yourself to get over Wendy completely before committing fully to Kim."

"I would take that advice, Casey, but after I told her this morning I was going to give my relationship with Wendy a real try, I doubt she wants to talk to me," Ruzek says, shaking his head and sighing.

"Don't say that," Matt tells him, taking a sip of beer. "She might be hurt at first, you should expect that, but she won't hold a grudge on you. Remember when I told you about the time Gabby took me to her Christmas party?" Ruzek nods, waiting for Casey to continue. "Well Gabby was of course hurt after that. And I hated seeing her hurt, it broke my heart. But I got her trust back and we became friends again. That's what you have to do with Kim. Don't rush things, just take 'em slow."

"Yeah but how do I get her trust back?" Ruzek questions, taking a sip of his beer. "You make it sound so easy but I'm sure it's harder than that."

"Just remind her that you care for her," Casey tells him. "Look, the day after Gabby's Christmas party, she got in an ambulance crash. I was worried sick, and I let her know. She realized I still cared for her and just because things went bad at that party, didn't mean we were a lost cause. Perfection takes time."

Ruzek nods, taking in Casey's advice, and planning on following it this time. "So you and Gabby are still good, then? Do you regret anything?" Ruzek asks, looking at him a little worriedly.

"I don't regret a damn thing. I love that woman to pieces and I'd do anything for her," Casey tells him, smiling a bit. "In fact," he continues, looking around the bar to make sure Gabby isn't around. "I'm planning on asking her to marry me."

Ruzek broke out into a grin, clapping his friend's shoulder. "That's good to hear, man, congrats. I hope everything works out."

Casey smiles just as big, nodding. "Thanks, Ruzek. Who knows, maybe that'll be you and Kim in a year or two." He winks at the cop, sipping his beer.

"Maybe," Ruzek shrugs, smiling a little as he finishes his beer. "What if it isn't, though? What if things fall apart before they even happen? Or what if things fall apart deep into the relationship?"

"You gotta take risks, man." Casey says, leaning his arm on the bar as he shakes his head. "If things go south, they go south. Sometimes that happens."

"I guess I'm just scared," Ruzek admits after a few seconds, sighing softly.

"I was scared too," Casey assures him. "Hell, I still am. I'm worried she'll say no to my proposal or…" He shakes his head then, taking the last sip of his beer.

"Or what?" Ruzek asks, looking at Matt curiously.

"Gabby has been training to become a firefighter, and her physical test is in a few days, so if she passes that she'll officially be a firefighter." Casey explains to the cop, his fingers spinning the empty beer bottle. "That scares the shit out of me. We had a female candidate about a month ago, and she ended up committing suicide. I'm worried that the job will break Gabby like that. And not to mention the physical dangers of the job. You think I'm excited to watch her run into burning buildings?"

"I can definitely see how that is tough for you," Ruzek says, nodding. "But Kim is a cop, so I can relate to that. I've seen people shoot at her before. But her tough, determined personality is something I'm most attracted to. She's badass and I love it. I mean, don't get me wrong, I get worried when I see a bullet fly past her head, but I'm not going to be the one to get in her way. She's a grown woman. She can take care of herself."

Casey nods, shrugging and sighing. "You're right, but I already worry about her as a paramedic, I'm going to go crazy when she's finally a firefighter."

Adam chuckles a little, shrugging. "That's only because you love her. Just remember that you can't make her decisions for her."

"I know that," Casey says, chuckling softly. "Believe me, I do. I support her even though she thinks I don't. When you love somebody like I love Gabs, you have to make compromises. So I'll stand by Gabby if she's a paramedic or firefighter. But I know one thing for sure."

"And what's that?"

"I can't lose her. I want to make sure we're together forever, and that's why I'm going to ask her to marry me."

"Man, I really hope I can love somebody as much as you love that woman," Ruzek chuckles, shaking his head. He was completely blown away by his friend's love for his girlfriend, and he wasn't sure if he ever had that with Wendy.

"You will Ruzek, you'll see." Casey smiles, nodding. "Isn't that Kim?" He points subtly towards the door, where Burgess was walking in.

"Yeah," Ruzek nods, his heart quickening as he looks over Kim. She was beautiful, as always, and Ruzek turned back towards Casey before he was caught staring.

"I met her at Chicago Med the day of the bombing," Casey told him, nodding a little. "She seems really nice. You better go talk to her before it's too late, man."

Ruzek nods, smiling a little at Matt. "Yeah, I should. Thanks again, man. I'm definitely going to follow your advice this time."

"Good," Casey chuckles, nodding. "Now go talk to your woman."

"Yes sir," Ruzek jokes, saluting him as he smiles and slides off the bar stool. "But seriously, thank you."

"No problem," Casey assures him, smiling as he shakes his head. Ruzek claps his shoulder one more time before walking towards Burgess, his heart quickening with each step.


End file.
